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22
General musical discussion / Re: Lesser known Russian/Soviet composers
« Last post by dhibbard on February 02, 2026, 06:52:29 pm »
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMOqjS9ysnmJVrFTBXfOfyUQ3cxwuNiqD

info about Grinblats  Latvian Composer during Soviet times.
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Broadcasts and concerts / Re: Stanley Bate Symphony 2 Premičre
« Last post by jonah on January 28, 2026, 11:04:11 pm »
I understand that Dutton may be issuing it, with Martin Yates
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General musical discussion / Re: Lesser known Russian/Soviet composers
« Last post by Christopher on January 27, 2026, 03:37:13 pm »
https://www.sb.by/articles/v-belorusskoy-filarmonii-sostoyalas-prezentatsiya-diska-simfonicheskaya-muzyka-belarusi.html

The Belarusian Philharmonic hosted a presentation of the disc "Symphonic Music of Belarus"
" This is a joint project of the Belarusian Union of Composers and the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Belarus, " explains project director and Chairman of the Board of the Belarusian Union of Composers Viktor Kisten , " so it's natural and logical that its presentation was timed to coincide with the opening of the Philharmonic season."

Right....and do you have information on where to get this disc? Do you maybe have it yourself and can give your insight as to the quality of the music?  Or is it just another random posting that you have found, rather like this list of totally random lesser known Russian/Soviet composers?
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General musical discussion / Re: Lesser known Russian/Soviet composers
« Last post by dhibbard on January 26, 2026, 03:18:17 pm »
https://www.sb.by/articles/v-belorusskoy-filarmonii-sostoyalas-prezentatsiya-diska-simfonicheskaya-muzyka-belarusi.html

The Belarusian Philharmonic hosted a presentation of the disc "Symphonic Music of Belarus"
" This is a joint project of the Belarusian Union of Composers and the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Belarus, " explains project director and Chairman of the Board of the Belarusian Union of Composers Viktor Kisten , " so it's natural and logical that its presentation was timed to coincide with the opening of the Philharmonic season."



The disc features ten works by classical Belarusian composers, from Bogatyrev to Kuznetsov. Four of these were performed to great acclaim on March 2, 2019, at a gala concert at the Philharmonic Hall to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the Belarusian Union of Composers.

" The idea arose that this program should somehow be immortalized, as the orchestra worked with all its heart, " explains Viktor Kisten. " We selected works that appeal to a wide audience, works that you want to hear again and again.

These are two excerpts from Yevgeny Glebov's ballets: "Flanders" from "Till Eulenspiegel" and "Adagio of the Prince and the Rose" from "The Little Prince." Incidentally, few know that the composer originally composed the delightful adagio melody, now familiar to every Belarusian, for Valery Rubinchik's film "King Stakh's Wild Hunt."
Vladimir Soltan's Concert Waltz was also written for the film. The composer composed it literally on the fly at the request of director Vladimir Orlov, who was looking for a composer for the 33-episode television series "The Cursed Cozy House." This heartwarming melody became its leitmotif.



Among the most striking pieces on the disc is "Nina's Waltz," from the music for the drama "Masquerade," written by Anatoly Bogatyrev in 1966 for the play of the same name at the Gorky Russian Theater. The play itself, directed by Honored Artist of the RSFSR Mikhailov and featuring such luminaries as Rostislav Yankovsky, Lyudmila Bylinskaya, and Alexandra Klimova, has long since become a thing of the past, while Bogatyrev's music lives on and moves us no less than Khachaturian's celebrated "Waltz."
Dmitry Smolsky's "Nostalgia" is also imbued with a special feeling.

" This is the main theme of my First Symphony, which was written in 1961, " the composer recalled at a meeting with students and faculty of the Minsk College of Music a year before his death. " It was performed by conductor Mnatsakanov." I've been hearing it constantly throughout my life, and after 55 years, I decided to make it into a separate piece.

In recent years, Lev Abelovich's Aria for Violin, dedicated to the Holocaust, has been performed more and more frequently. Honored Artist of the Republic of Belarus violinist Yulia Stefanovich performs it with heartfelt purity and rigor—I would even say, self-sacrificingly.



Heinrich Wagner's Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra, written in 1988 and dedicated to the remarkable family duo Igor Olovnikov and Natalia Tashchilina, has never been performed or recorded since its premiere, despite being the first double concerto in the history of Belarusian music. Again, few know that in the 1940s, Heinrich Wagner performed as a jazz pianist, collaborating with Leonid Utesov as part of a front-line brigade and accompanying his daughter, Edith. Later, during the era of the fight against "cosmopolitanism" and jazz, this passion was forgotten, but in the concerto for two pianos, it is revived with renewed vigor.

Interestingly, Heinrich Wagner's Double Concerto, performed by the piano duo Natalia Kotova-Gromova and Valery Borovikov, was recorded on November 28, 2019—two days before it was performed at the Duettissimo 2019 festival gala concert under the baton of Yuri Karavaev.

The remaining works on the disc were recorded by People's Artist of Belarus Alexander Anisimov on October 30–31, 2019. This disc also includes repertoire hits from the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Belarus, not performed at the Composers' Union concert but familiar to listeners from their regular concert programs: the adagio from Vyacheslav Kuznetsov's Cleopatra and Sergei Cortes's The Last Inca, and the barcarolle from Andrei Mdivani's symphony-ballet Raphael. By the way, none of these ballets have ever been performed at the Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus.



All recordings were made in the acoustics of the Great Concert Hall of the Belarusian Philharmonic.

" But these are recordings made specifically for the disc—with takes and all the editing that goes into studio production, " assures Viktor Kisten. " The main idea is to bring Belarusian music to the masses. To that end, we've created a 24-page booklet so those interested in music can read about each piece."

The Belarusian Union of Composers emphasizes that this disc is the first, the project will continue, and the entire event can be called unprecedented for Belarus.

" There are such seasoned classics here! " Viktor Kisten smiles. "

And then there are Churkin, Aladov, Tikotsky, Turenkov. There are also unfairly forgotten works by our most popular composers. All this should be accessible to the people, after all, the people are the main bearers and consumers of culture."
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https://www.em-records.com/disc-subscriptions/Rawsthorne-Works-for-Vn-and-Pf-subscription-form.php
I just discovered this pre-order form that suggests a future recording of all of Alan Rawsthorne's works for violin and piano, to be released by EM Recording, which had recorded, for example, complete violin and piano music of Howells and Parry. The most important discoveries here are two early violin sonatas, one of which I suppose is the one in A Major that was performed during the English Music Festival in 2025. I can't find any info about that piece back then!
30
Broadcasts and concerts / Re: Stanley Bate Symphony 2 Premičre
« Last post by Robert Cao on January 20, 2026, 11:46:40 am »
Any info about a possible broadcast or commercial recording of this piece?
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